Purge plastic, but partially: State
Mumbai: The Maharashtra government has said the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) should concentrate on enforcing a thickness-specific ban on plastic carry bags and not a blanket ban of all plastic carry bags as originally envisaged.
State environment minister Suresh Shetty told TOI that implementation of a total ban on carry bags, even for those above 50 microns, is not possible. The BMC should in letter and spirit implement the existing thickness-specific ban, and we are ready to provide any help for that. However, a complete ban is not possible since several industries and sectors solely depend on use of plastic, he said.
Mumbais first citizen Shraddha Jadhav last week announced an apparently unplanned call for a total ban
on plastic bags, only to make a
U-turn later. Though Jhadavs vocal endorsements of a total ban were based on a decision announced by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), even the Pune municipal commissioner is not promoting a total ban. Were not enforcing a total ban in Pune as of today. We are just strictly implementing the Maharashtra Non-Biodegradable Garbage (Control) Ordinance, 2006, which prohibits use of plastics bags thinner than 50-microns. As it is, we dont have any legal authority to enforce a complete ban, Pune municipal commissioner Mahesh Zagade told TOI.
Jadhav after her U-turn declared the BMC would only request the state government to amend the 2006 ordinance to bring tetrapack, metal, plastic and thermocol under the ambit of the ordinance. A motion seeking this change will soon be unanimously passed in the BMC and forwarded to the state government, she said.
The Federation of Retail Traders Welfare Association said the impact of an unplanned total ban could be disastrous. Anyone who is talking about a 100% ban on plastic bags should seriously consider providing cheaper alternatives to plastic first. There are thousands of small and medium shops that cant afford the more expensive jute and paper bags, said Viren Shah, president of FRTWA.
Experts who were part of the V Ranganathan committee set up after the 2005 floods to draft an action plan on carry bags, said the issue is about management and economics of collection. A total ban would only put pressure on other resources such as paper and cloth as we are not living in an ideal e c o l o g i c a l world. The
committee m e m b e r s were of the firm opinion that a thicknessspecific ban was a move in the right direction and even its initial impact was positive. But implementing agencies were unable to sustain it, said a former panel member and MPCB official.
Experts had also verbally suggested that an effective solution would be either to levy a tax on users or insert a product liability clause while granting licences to manufacturers. In either case, the responsibility will be fixed on someone, a former member of the committee said.
The Rule Book The Maharashtra Non-Biodegradable Garbage (Control) Ordinance, 2006, restricts minimum thickness permissible for bags made of polyethylene or polypropylene to below 50 microns and dimension not less than 8 by 12 inches. First-time offenders are fined Rs 5,000, second-time offenders Rs 10,000 and third-time offenders Rs 25,000 and can be sentenced to three months imprisonment
Mumbais Efforts In Banning Plastic Immediately after the 2005 floods when plastic choked the citys drainage system, the government banned the use of plastic below 20 microns. But implementation proved tough and the limit was increased to 50 microns in 2006
Other Cities A total ban on use of plastic bags was shortlived in Haryana and New Delhi. New Delhis ban (announced last year) on use, sale and storage of all plastic bags left several loopholes, not specifying if the earlier ban (of 40 microns and over) remains, resulting in confusion and misuse. Himachal Pradesh last year even restricted the production and distribution of all bags made of non-biodegradable materials. But plastic bags were smuggled from outside. Sikkim, Jammu & Kashmir, Kerala and West Bengal also tried a total ban
From Around The World Worldwide, a levy on use of plastic carry bags is usually seen as an effective remedy to the menace of plastic bags. On January 1, Washington DC announced a 5% levy on its residents on the use of each plastic bag. Another country to have adopted similar measures is Ireland, which in 2002 passed a tax on plastic bags, charging 33 cents per bag from the customers. Other countries limited the threat of plastic by setting up efficient and scientific waste management practices
State environment minister Suresh Shetty told TOI that implementation of a total ban on carry bags, even for those above 50 microns, is not possible. The BMC should in letter and spirit implement the existing thickness-specific ban, and we are ready to provide any help for that. However, a complete ban is not possible since several industries and sectors solely depend on use of plastic, he said.
Mumbais first citizen Shraddha Jadhav last week announced an apparently unplanned call for a total ban
on plastic bags, only to make a
U-turn later. Though Jhadavs vocal endorsements of a total ban were based on a decision announced by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), even the Pune municipal commissioner is not promoting a total ban. Were not enforcing a total ban in Pune as of today. We are just strictly implementing the Maharashtra Non-Biodegradable Garbage (Control) Ordinance, 2006, which prohibits use of plastics bags thinner than 50-microns. As it is, we dont have any legal authority to enforce a complete ban, Pune municipal commissioner Mahesh Zagade told TOI.
Jadhav after her U-turn declared the BMC would only request the state government to amend the 2006 ordinance to bring tetrapack, metal, plastic and thermocol under the ambit of the ordinance. A motion seeking this change will soon be unanimously passed in the BMC and forwarded to the state government, she said.
The Federation of Retail Traders Welfare Association said the impact of an unplanned total ban could be disastrous. Anyone who is talking about a 100% ban on plastic bags should seriously consider providing cheaper alternatives to plastic first. There are thousands of small and medium shops that cant afford the more expensive jute and paper bags, said Viren Shah, president of FRTWA.
Experts who were part of the V Ranganathan committee set up after the 2005 floods to draft an action plan on carry bags, said the issue is about management and economics of collection. A total ban would only put pressure on other resources such as paper and cloth as we are not living in an ideal e c o l o g i c a l world. The
committee m e m b e r s were of the firm opinion that a thicknessspecific ban was a move in the right direction and even its initial impact was positive. But implementing agencies were unable to sustain it, said a former panel member and MPCB official.
Experts had also verbally suggested that an effective solution would be either to levy a tax on users or insert a product liability clause while granting licences to manufacturers. In either case, the responsibility will be fixed on someone, a former member of the committee said.
The Rule Book The Maharashtra Non-Biodegradable Garbage (Control) Ordinance, 2006, restricts minimum thickness permissible for bags made of polyethylene or polypropylene to below 50 microns and dimension not less than 8 by 12 inches. First-time offenders are fined Rs 5,000, second-time offenders Rs 10,000 and third-time offenders Rs 25,000 and can be sentenced to three months imprisonment
Mumbais Efforts In Banning Plastic Immediately after the 2005 floods when plastic choked the citys drainage system, the government banned the use of plastic below 20 microns. But implementation proved tough and the limit was increased to 50 microns in 2006
Other Cities A total ban on use of plastic bags was shortlived in Haryana and New Delhi. New Delhis ban (announced last year) on use, sale and storage of all plastic bags left several loopholes, not specifying if the earlier ban (of 40 microns and over) remains, resulting in confusion and misuse. Himachal Pradesh last year even restricted the production and distribution of all bags made of non-biodegradable materials. But plastic bags were smuggled from outside. Sikkim, Jammu & Kashmir, Kerala and West Bengal also tried a total ban
From Around The World Worldwide, a levy on use of plastic carry bags is usually seen as an effective remedy to the menace of plastic bags. On January 1, Washington DC announced a 5% levy on its residents on the use of each plastic bag. Another country to have adopted similar measures is Ireland, which in 2002 passed a tax on plastic bags, charging 33 cents per bag from the customers. Other countries limited the threat of plastic by setting up efficient and scientific waste management practices